Nazi Princess: Hitler, Lord Rothermere, and Princess Stephanie von Hohenlohe
Who knew? Once called by President Roosevelt “more dangerous than 10,000 men,” a part-Jewish Austrian princess – well-known seductress and Mata Hari type figure – was a spy before and during the Nazi rise to power in the 1930s, moving in the highest echelons of power. She became a facilitator between those in the U.K. who believed in détente and appeasement of the Nazis and the Fuhrer himself who clearly adored her – at least for some time until her Jewish ancestry became a problem. Princess Stephanie became the go between, linking Hitler to British Lord Rothermere, a famed, established journalist and newspaper owner, who strongly believed not merely in England’s need to be strong and armed, but of working with Hitler to come to an understanding of how the U.K. and Germany could work together peacefully. Surprising, though, was the level to which Nazi sympathies went in the U.K. and all the way up, of course, to the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, who the Nazis apparently desperately wanted back on the throne of England.
This fascinating book filled a large hole in my knowledge of just how politically savvy and manipulative Hitler and his henchmen were about world politics.
